Legitimement Maries: Vivre Libre
by flute-player56
Summary: Sequel to "Legitimement Maries". Hermione and Fred not only have a marriage to sustain, but they also have a family to raise. How will they manage after being brought together by a marriage law? Must read "Legitimement Maries" first!
1. Chapter 1

_**Here is the first chapter of the sequel. Make sure you read Legitimement Maries before embarking on this one, otherwise you won't have any idea about what is going on!**_

_**Don't forget to read and review!**_

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**Chapter 1: Flashbacks and Dreams**

Although baby Henry was now too big to be cradled to sleep, Hermione could not help but want to hold him to her as he nodded off for the night. Although she had never really seen herself as the maternal sort, she found that she took great pleasure in watching the way his tiny fingers would curl around the invisible objects of his dreams, as his chest rose and fell in a gentle and predictable pattern.

Life had changed irrevocably for both Hermione and Fred. They had spent the early part of their marriage focused entirely on themselves, and since the birth of their son, they found themselves ignoring almost all of what had previously frustrated them.

Hermione still found herself scoffing at socks which had been left on the bathroom floor, or at the sticky remains of a puking pastille, but she no longer had the energy to do anything more than raise her eyebrows at it. Henry took up far too much of her time, and quite frankly she wouldn't have it any other way.

Weekends were an immensely enjoyable time for Hermione, and the absolute best part of her week. It was the time of week when Fred would leave the shop in Verity's capable hands and he would be home for picnics in the park, an ice cream sundae lunch in Diagon Alley or a shopping trip in muggle London. He would smile in delight at his son plunged his pudgy hands into his portion of chocolate peanut butter ice cream, before painting the front of his shirt in the dessert. Hermione would close her eyes and take a deep breath in every time this happened, but she would quickly open her eyes at his giggles, not wanting to miss a single moment.

However, this weekend would be an exception to the rule.

This weekend would be the first anniversary of her father's death.

It was after they had put baby Henry to bed one evening that Hermione decided to bring up the subject with her husband. They were lying on the sofa together – Hermione was curled up on one side with her head resting on the armrest, whilst Fred had let his head drop into the space made by her lap. They were listening to the local Wizarding radio station, although Hermione was not paying it much attention at all.

"Fred?" she said, her voice was so soft that Fred did not hear it at first.

"Fred?" she repeated, this time a little louder.

"Hmm?" Fred let out a sleepy yawn before tilting his head up to look at his wife.

"I was thinking about what we were going to do this weekend... it's the first anniversary of my father's death. I wanted to take Henry up to visit him," she paused, waiting for Fred's reaction.

They had mutually decided to wait until Henry was a little older before taking him to see the grave of the man for which he was named.

Fred seemed to wake a little more at what Hermione had said because he flipped his body around completely so that he was facing her.

"Are you sure?" he asked, eyebrows furrowing towards the centre of his face.

"Positive," Hermione replied, biting her lower lip as she waited for his reaction. "I know that we wanted to wait until he was old enough to understand, but I want him to get to know the Grandfather that he never got to meet, even if this is the only way that we will ever be able to achieve that."

Fred nodded, pulling himself up so that he would be able to put him arms around Hermione in a hug, which she reciprocated.

"If you're okay with that, then I am too. He might not understand why while he is still so young, but it will still be a worthwhile trip."

Despite the sombre subject matter, Hermione could not help but smile at how lucky she was to have a husband who understood the importance of family.

**HPHPHPHPHPHPHP**

It was a windy day in London when Hermione and Fred arrived at the cemetery with baby Henry cocooned in their arms, but the sun still shone rather brightly. Despite the fact that the cemetery was quite overcrowded with graves, it was a reasonably short walk to the grave of Henry Granger.

Hermione looked at it with a heavy heart, eyes stinging as she shut them tight, remembering how it had looked exactly one year previous. The earth was still softly turned back then, and the flowers were fresh.

The flowers were still fresh as Marian visited weekly, but they were no longer the white lilies which had covered the grave at the funeral. Today they were white daisies, just starting to turn a little yellow around the edges of the petals. These flowers were only a day old or so.

At the funeral Hermione had still been pregnant, and she could vividly remember standing in front of the open casket, a hand on her immense belly, being too overwhelmed to even cry. She had pressed the fingers of her left hand to her lips and then to the edge of the casket, a move she repeated now, resting her fingers on the cold granite that now encased what remained of his body.

It was only when she felt Fred's arm wind its way around her waist that she opened her eyes.

"Can I have a minute or two, alone?" she looked up at her husband, seeking his cooperation.

Fred nodded, taking Henry from her arms before walking back a short distance to a bench where he could sit.

For the first time in a year, the tears came, and they came with a vengeance. It did not take long for Hermione to reach the hiccupping stage, and she crouched down low to the ground. Her arms wrapped around her torso as though she were cold, although the sun was shining down on her with increasing warmth.

"I'm sorry, Dad. I'm sorry that I wasn't the perfect daughter you deserve. I'm sorry for what I did to you and Mum. I sent you to Australia and I erased all your memories. I only wanted to keep you safe, I promise. I wish there was something I could have done to prevent this. I was so sure that you had years ahead of you."

Hermione rubbed at her eyes with the back of her hand, taking a steadying breathe before she continued to speak.

"I'm sorry that you never got to meet your grandson. We named him after you. Sometimes I feel like it is both a blessing and a curse that we did that. It means that we'll never forget you, but it also means that we can't stop thinking of you. I don't know if I'll ever stop missing you."

The rate of her breathing slowed as Hermione finally released what she had been waiting so long to do.

"I can see that Mum's been to visit. Molly and Arthur have been so wonderful, and so have all the other Weasley's. They have accepted us like one of their own. I couldn't have asked to join a better family. I just hope that wherever you are, you are proud of me."

"I'm sure that he couldn't help but be proud of you."

Fred's voice startled Hermione. She had been so engrossed in her own thoughts that she did not hear his footsteps. Recovering quickly, she nodded at her husband, taking his hand in one of hers before using the other to wipe away her sadness.

Together, they began to tell their son all about what a wonderful man his namesake was, and would be, forever in their hearts.

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_**Review please!**_


	2. Chapter 2

_**I am trying my hardest to update every Sunday night (Australian time). For those of you that live in the USA, this means that it would be your Saturday night/Sunday morning, depending on the time zone. I can't make any promises that this will definately happen each week, but it is what I am aiming for.**_

_**Don't forget to leave a review. I love to hear what you have to say :)**_

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**Chapter 2: New Acquisitions **

Hermione winced yet again as the squeaky toy she had walked over threatened to wake the baby she was trying to get to sleep in her arms, not to mention it caused several shooting pains to move up the balls of feet.

A few extra rocks in her arms, and her newly born son gave one final yawn before nestling his head into the warmth of his mother's chest, finally falling asleep. Hermione gave a yawn of her own as she set him down in his crib for the night. She looked at his face, watching the tiny puffs of air escape his mouth as he breathed gently in his sleep. His tiny hand curled around the edge of the blanket, and Hermione felt a tight feeling in her chest as she watched her newest child sleep. She had forgotten how exhausting it was to have a newborn baby in the house, but she now knew that she wouldn't swap it for anything.

Tip toeing out of his bedroom, she looked around at the lounge room, sighing at the mess that was there. Henry's toys were supposed to occupy just one corner of the room; however, they were now spread out as far as he could walk to spread them out. At almost two years old, he was not only able to walk, but run, and therefore spread his toys into all kinds of nooks and crannies for Hermione and Fred to stub their toes on in the middle of the night.

Crawling back into bed, she had only just settled herself under the covers before she felt Fred's arm snake around her waist, pulling her closer to him.

"How's Archie?"

Hermione sighed, closing her eyes as she tried to fall asleep for the third time that night.

"Asleep, finally."

Fred's nuzzled his head into Hermione's neck, planting a gentle kiss there before he settled down to try and get to sleep. However, he found that it was easier said than done. His brain seemed to be thinking far too hard.

The flat in which they were living was okay for now. It was a little cramped at times, but they were managing. But what would happen when baby Arthur, or Archie as they preferred to call him, would get a little older. Henry was already running around, playing with his toys. What would happen when they were both running around?

Fred had the benefit of growing up at the burrow with plenty of space to run around in. He only wished for his own sons to have that same privilege, and the same for whoever their third child was going to end up being. Fred knew that this was reality, and that it was going to happen sooner rather than later.

Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes was doing well, but would their profits stretch to a family with two small children, and a new house? Hermione had only been able to go back to work for a few months before she was back on maternity leave for Archie. She was not due to go back for a good few months even with both Molly and Marian on babysitting duty. They would have to survive on a single income until then, and babies were not cheap.

Fred looked over at the clock on the wall, squinting as he tried to figure out the time in the minimal light. He would have to awake in a few hours. Shutting his eyes, he tried to get back to sleep despite the intrusive thoughts that were worrying him.

**HPHPHPHPHP**

"'Mione?"

Henry had decided that his breakfast cereal would look better if he dumped it on the floor this morning, and his mother was currently hunched over the mess as she attempted to clean it up.

"Yes?" she replied, her voice thick with tiredness as she stood up from the floor.

"I was thinking last night..."

Fred did not get the chance to continue because a loud cry punctured through the air from one of the bedrooms.

"I'll get him," he said to Hermione. She nodded her agreement as she put her nose close to the container of milk. It smelled rather sour, and suddenly she could not blame Henry for decorating the floor with his breakfast. Tipping it down the sink, she used a knife to break up some of the larger chunks so that they would be able to fit down the drain.

Fred re-entered the room, jiggling the still crying baby.

"I think he's hungry," Fred guessed.

Hermione only had the energy to nod once more before she started to prepare him a bottle. When it had just been Henry, Hermione was ecstatic with motherhood. She loved the challenge, however, two children under the age of two was a challenge that was becoming increasingly difficult to undertake. She had never been more sleep-deprived and tired in her life.

"As I was saying before this little fella interrupted us, I was thinking last night..."

Despite herself, Hermione could not help but let out a giggle.

"That never bodes well!"

Fred let out his own good-natured laugh before continuing.

"Shush, you! I was thinking about how small this flat is going to end up being for us. I know that Archie has only just been born, but time is passing quickly and we're going to need to have one more child. It might be easier on everyone if we thought about moving somewhere a bit bigger."

Hermione seemed to wake up a little more at this.

"Can we afford that?"

Fred shrugged his shoulders at his wife.

"We're going to have to."

The next few months were spent frantically trying to find a new house to live in. Despite the convenience of being close to the shop, Diagon Alley was out of the question. It was far too expensive for what they needed, and there would be nowhere for the boys to run around and play. Godric's Hollow was also a bit pricey, even though Harry had decided to move there with Ginny and their own children James and Albus. They were also in the middle of going through all the paperwork associated with adopting Teddy Lupin.

Andromeda was doing a wonderful job at raising her grandson, but she was getting on in years, and it would be a good thing for Teddy if he had other children to play with in the house. Hermione thought that Ginny was brave taking Teddy in as well, but she quickly remembered that Ginny had grown up with in a house dominated by males, and she was sure that she would be able to handle it.

A few other Wizarding villages became options, but Fred and Hermione quickly scratched them out because the houses were never quite right. They were either too small, too large or they simply couldn't afford it. After visiting what was most likely dozens of houses, both Hermione and Fred were at their wits end. It felt like they would never be able to find a new place to live.

There was one rare, quiet evening when Hermione's mother had both the boys, and she and Fred were having dinner in silence for the first time in months. As much as Hermione loved her sons, it was a welcome change.

"Fred?" she asked, seeking her husband's attention. "What would you think about moving to a muggle village?"

She looked into his face, and seeing no visible signs of rejection, she continued to speak.

"We aren't having any luck with the Wizarding villages, so I thought we might try to expand our options a little..."

Fred finished chewing the bite of food he had in his mouth before responding.

"I was thinking a similar thing myself. We might be able to get someplace nice quite near your mother's house, sp that way it would be easy for her to visit. Any house we buy would be connected to the Floo, so it would be easy for everyone else to see us. I really don't see a problem with it, and anyway, I was thinking of getting some of those muggle appliances as well. A television might not be so much of a bad idea."

Relieved that Fred agreed with her, Hermione and Fred spent the remainder of the evening making plans for what they would like in their new home.

**HPHPHPHPHPHP**

Hermione thanked her mother once more for allowing them to borrow her car whilst they went to inspect a lovely cottage on the outskirts of Hermione's hometown. It sounded like the perfect house, and when they pulled the car up out the front of it, they could see that they were not wrong.

It was secluded enough that they could still use magic, yet it was still a reasonably short drive from all the town's amenities. Marian was close enough to continue her babysitting services, and best of all, the house was in their price range.

Hermione only had to briefly cast her eyes over the interior of the house to know that it was what they were looking for.

The walls had been freshly painted in a clean cream colour by the previous owners, and the burgundy coloured carpet looked like it only need a quick steam clean. Their furniture would fit comfortably into each of the rooms, and there was even a room each for Henry and Archie, with a spare one for any future children.

Fred could not help but make a joke about how twins ran in the Weasley family and that if they were the case there would still be plenty of room for them, for which he was cuffed around the ears by Hermione.

The spacious lounge and dining rooms were equipped with all the latest muggle appliances, and the rooms opened out onto a landscaped garden. The previous owners clearly took a lot of pride in their home, and there was a minimal amount of work which needed to be completed. This meant that they would be able to move in within the month.

Hermione and Fred could not have been more delighted, and quickly went home to share their news with the rest of the family.


	3. Chapter 3

_**A brief little moment between Grandmother and Grandson! Don't forget to read and review :)**_

**Chapter 3: Bedtime Stories**

Marian had only just closed the door of the bedroom when she heard a tiny voice come from within.

"Grandma?"

Smiling to her herself, she opened the door just enough to poke her head back into the room.

"Yes, Henry, is there anything else you would like before you went to sleep?"

Despite the fact that she had just tucked her grandson under the covers, Henry was sitting upright and wide awake in bed.

"Where are my mummy and daddy?"

For a child who was only just three years old, Henry was remarkably articulate. Although Marian suspected that this was mostly due to Hermione's strict regimen that she imposed on her children. She did not want either of her sons to be disadvantaged in any way, and therefore had devised numerous educational games to help improve their speech and vocabulary.

"Your mummy and daddy are at the hospital visiting your newest baby cousin."

"Oh," replied Henry, a little furrow appearing between his brows. "Is it a girl or boy?"

"I don't know, darling. We can find that out in the morning. Right now, we need to focus on getting to sleep. Archie is already asleep in his bed."

Henry scrunched his entire face up at this.

"Grandma you a silly billy, he always sleeps."

Marian had the good grace to laugh.

"Then maybe you should follow his example!"

"No! Not tired!"

Entering the room completely, Marian sat down on the edge of his bed putting her hand out to sweep the dark curls from Henry's eyes. He may have been born with bright red hair, but it had darkened as he got older. It was now a dark auburn colour that glowed slightly redder when he played in the sun.

"Come on, lovely, you need to get to bed," chuckled Marian, knowing that those words would be completely ignored.

"Bedtime story?"

Letting out a long, drawn out sigh that was more theatrical than showing any feelings of exasperation, Marian pulled the boy onto her lap.

"How about the story of the farmer and his four sons?"

Henry snuggled his head down into his grandmother's warm body, waiting for her to begin her story. He always thought that Grandma told the best stories.

"Once there was a farmer who had four sons. They were always fighting with each other. The farmer tried very hard to bring them on the right path, but they would never pay any attention to him. He was very worried about them."

"One day, he came up with a brilliant plan. He called his sons and asked them to find a few sticks. When they brought the sticks, the farmer tied them in a bundle and asked them to try their strength to break it."

"Each of the sons tried to break the bundle but failed. The farmer then untied the bundle and gave one stick to each of them to break. Each of them was able to do it easily."

"The farmer said, 'Now you understand. If you stand together, no one can get the better of you. But if you keep fighting, you will be broken one by one.'"

Noticing that Henry had stopped fidgeting, and had grown very quiet, Marian looked down at her lap. Henry was just on the cusp of sleep. She could see that he was fighting to keep his eyelids open.

Pressing a gentle kiss onto his forehead, she scooped him up into her arms and tucked him back under the covers. Eyes closing as soon as his head hit the pillow, soft snores soon began to fill the darkened room.

"Sweet dreams, little one," Marian whispered as she tiptoed out of the room, allowing her grandson to finally sleep.


	4. Chapter 4

**_This is only a very short chapter, but I can't help it. The next chapter shall be longer and more exciting._**

**_Don't forget to review!_**

**Chapter 4: Office of Magical Births, Deaths and Marriages**

Harry had spent the best part of three hours lying in his bed, wondering if sleep would ever happen tonight. Apparently he was also keeping Ginny awake because he felt her hand on his shoulder steadying his body as it thrashed around in attempt to get comfortable.

"What's wrong?"

Her voice was soft, and slightly slurred with sleep, but even though the sound of it calmed Harry considerably, he could not stop the churning of his stomach.

"Are we doing the right thing?"

That was all that Harry had to ask for Ginny to understand exactly what he was referring to.

"Andromeda agreed to it. She even said that he would be better off with us, because he would have James and Albus to play and grow up with."

"I know what she said," a resigned tone was noticeable in Harry's voice. "But what if we are making a mistake?"

He felt Ginny's arm wrapping around his waist, and it was soon followed by the rest of her body pressing against his back.

"We won't know until it happens. Besides, it's not as if we are cutting Andromeda completely from his life. They will be free to see each other as they always have. Teddy will just be spending more time with us than what he already has been. You don't have to be a genius to see that he loves it here anyway. Andromeda has to practically drag him out the door by his feet to get him home."

Feeling Ginny's lips press against the back of his neck, Harry was able to calm his nerves just enough to gain a little more perspective on the situation.

"Thanks," he whispered to his wife. "I'll try to stop keeping you awake now."

Ginny chuckled quietly.

"Goodnight, Harry," she replied, still chuckling as she turned over to her side of the bed.

**HPHPHPHPHPHPHP**

Adopting Teddy Lupin was no easy decision for Harry to make. He had felt a strong sense of duty towards his godson, and he spent quite a bit of time pondering why his feelings were so strong.

Obviously he had known the boy since birth, and had felt great friendship towards Teddy's biological parents'; however he could also feel something more than that. Perhaps it was the fact that he had never really spent a great deal of time with Sirius while he was still alive?

Was this some kind of internal yearning for a relationship with a paternal figure in his own life?

Whatever the reason, Harry was glad to have Teddy as a part of his family. In fact, they started inaugurating him into the family well before the adoption papers were legal. Both he and Ginny wanted the transition to be as smooth as possible for all parties involved.

Andromeda had been doing a tremendous job raising Teddy on her own, but age was catching up to her, and Teddy wanted to play with children close to his own age.

Firstly they had invited Teddy to spend the day with Albus and James. A day of playing in the sandpit, and around the garden turned into spending the night at the Potter house. One night soon stretched into two nights, and two nights stretched into three. This had been the process for several months, and so far all had been well. The only major flare ups which had occurred were when Andromeda would tell Teddy that it was time to go home.

This would cause a tantrum. Teddy would hold his breath until he would go blue in the face. Literally. Then every other feature on his body, including the hair on his head would turn a particularly shocking shade of electric blue.

Ginny and Andromeda would shake their heads at this, whilst Harry would have to bite down onto both of his lips to stop laughter from exploding out of him. Harry would snap his wand in half if Teddy didn't turn out exactly to be like the Marauder's when he finally attended Hogwarts.

However, the day had finally arrived when Teddy would be making a permanent move to the Potter's home.

Over the gradual process of a few days, Andromeda had been bringing over clothes, books, toys, special blankies, drink bottles... everything that Teddy seemed to own. It looked to Harry that Teddy had certainly been quite spoiled over since he was born five years earlier. But he couldn't blame Andromeda. Teddy was the only connection she had to the family whom she had lost so abruptly at the hands of Lord Voldemort.

Then came the arrival of Teddy himself.

A whir of purple had whizzed through the front door, as soon as Harry had the chance to open it. Looking up, he saw a haggard looking Andromeda carrying a bag with what looked like the last of Teddy's belongings.

"Hello, Andromeda. I take it that the theme of today is purple for Teddy. Come in and put your feet up. Ginny'll have a cup of tea ready in a minute."

"Thank you," chuckled Andromeda, stepping over the threshold into the house. "He was rather excited when I explained to him what was happening today. I'm not sure that he understands that permanence of adoption, but my house will always be open if and when you need a baby-sitter."

Harry nodded his head.

"Yes!" he replied. "You're always welcome to come and see him. Our home is your home too. Of course, if he ends up a bit too much of a handful for Ginny and I, we'll just ship him straight back to you."

Harry couldn't help adding that last part in with a wink. Andromeda laughed loudly, knowing that Harry would never give up Teddy now that he had him.

Ginny appeared at that moment, handing Andromeda her cup of tea.

"We finally got the documentation from the Ministry, just this morning," she said. Moving back into the kitchen Ginny quickly re-emerged with a large white envelope in her hands. Reaching in, she pulled out an equally large piece of parchment, filled with a neat, purple-coloured script.

This document is to certify that

**Edward Remus Lupin**

_(5 April, 1998)_

is the legal issue of

**Harry James Potter**

_(31 July 1980)_

and

**Ginevra Molly Potter**

_(11 August, 1981)_

_Signed: Giselle MacPherson_

_Office of Magical Births, Deaths and Marriages_

_Ministry of Magic_


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5: Relax and Let It Happen**

"Mummy, is there another baby in your belly?"

Hermione's heart clenched at Henry's words. She and Fred had been desperately trying for baby for well over a year. This was worse than when they needed to conceive Henry. It was taking far longer, and Hermione was frequently under the impression that she was defective in some way. The others just had to sneeze and they would be pregnant.

This was not the case for Hermione, and this weighed heavily on her mind as she answered her son.

"No, darling. There is no baby yet."

Hermione was sure that Henry had accepted this answer, until she heard the _other _question which she so frequently dreaded.

"Why?"

Taking a deep breath, she steadied her voice before answering.

"I don't know honey-bunch. We just have to wait and see what happens."

Henry nodded and went back to playing with his toys, but Hermione could not forget their conversation. She did manage to ignore it for a little while as she distracted herself with household chores and playing with the children, but as soon as she had put them into bed that evening, the thoughts crept back once more.

What would happen if she could not get pregnant with her third child?

The law implicitly stated that each couple needed to have a minimum of three children within five years of marriage, and their fifth wedding anniversary was fast approaching. Okay, maybe they had only just celebrated four years of marriage, but conceiving this time was already taking longer than what it had done with Henry. Months longer.

Sighing to herself, Hermione finished putting her sons to bed before tucking herself in next to Fred. Curling under the covers, she turned towards the edge of the bed and tried to go to sleep.

Her attempt was short-lived. Immediately, she felt Fred's arm wrap around her waist, pulling her close to him.

"What's up?" he whispered to her, nuzzling his head into the crook of her neck.

Of course Fred would notice that something was wrong. Ever since the first night they had brought Henry home from the hospital they had kissed each other goodnight, no matter how exhausted they were, or how many arguments they had over the course of the day.

Still, Hermione couldn't help but respond in the way that she did.

"Nothing's up, I'm just tired. It was a busy day," she said, hoping that he would ignore it and go back to sleep.

Fred carefully pulled her further into his arms, turning her so that she was facing him. He hated it when she would close herself off to him, either physically or emotionally.

"You're lying," he simply said, brushing his fingers gently against her cheek in an attempt to calm her.

Hermione did not have the heart or the energy to get angry with him. She knew that he was only doing this because he was concerned about her.

"Yes," she conceded to his accusation. "Henry asked me something today, and I can't stop thinking about what he said."

"What did he ask?" Fred questioned, confused by what Henry could possibly ask to elicit such a response from his mother.

"He asked if there was another baby in my belly yet..." Hermione replied, her tone more morose than ever.

Fred immediately understood. Hermione had been this way before becoming pregnant with Henry. The marriage law was constantly in their minds as long as it remained incomplete.

To Hermione, this was nature procrastinating, and she did not like it one bit. She just wanted to have all of this over and done with so that they would not incur any penalties. She was not one to procrastinate, not matter how unpleasant the task.

"Fred, what if they take our children away from us?"

Fred could not help but become incredibly confused.

"What would make you think that the Ministry would take our children away from us?"

Hermione tried to think through her logic, it seemed to make sense in her mind.

"If we don't become pregnant with another child before our fifth wedding anniversary then we will be punished. We might not be cast out of the community just yet, but they will find another way to get back at us. They could split us up and say that we don't deserve the children that we do have."

Feeling immense anger towards the government that would act in such a way to give its citizen such fear, Fred attempted to soothe his wife.

"The government is not as corrupt as what it once was. There have been steps towards reversing the law, and reducing punishments."

The vibrations of his voice against the side of her neck calmed Hermione down slightly, and a gentle kiss placed in the same spot helped alleviate some of her fears.

"That is true," she concurred, "but there is obviously still a lot of corruption that we haven't picked up on yet. That's the only reason why this law is still in place."

Fred's fingers continued to stroke her skin, relaxing her with every caress. She was still scared and angry, but it was not nearly as bad as it was before. In fact, she felt herself begin to get a little drowsy. It had been a very long day for her. Archie had reached the phase in life where all he wanted was to cling to his mother like a limpet. Hermione's arms ached from carrying him around for most of the day.

"Yes, but think about this..." Fred paused for a moment, not sure if he truly wanted to ask Hermione the question he had brewing in his mind. Shaking his head slightly, he pressed on. "If you woke up tomorrow morning and the law was completely revoked, would you change anything about the way your life is now?"

"No," Hermione answered without a single ounce of hesitation.

"Exactly," replied Fred. "You would still feel the same urgency to become pregnant. It's not the law making you feel like this Hermione. You just need to relax and let it happen."

**HPHPHPHPHPHPHP**

Fred and Hermione had barely entered through the door of the Burrow before Molly pounced on them.

"I think I already know the answer just from looking at you, but do you know if it's a girl or a boy?"

Hermione let out a loud laugh, putting a protective hand over her belly.

"No! We wanted it to be a surprise," replied Fred, putting an arm around his wife's shoulder.

"Mummy!" Archie came toddling out of the lounge room as fast as his short legs would carry him, letting out a loud wail as he went. As soon as he reached his mother, his arms wound tightly around her legs.

"Hello, darling," Hermione chuckled. "I see that you missed me."

"Yes," came a muffled reply from where Archie had mashed his face into her denim jeans.

At that moment, another little boy emerged from the lounge room; however this one walked much more calmly. Blue eyes staring intensely at his mother, it was almost as though he were sizing her up for something.

"I think it's a boy," Henry proclaimed to the others present in the room.

Hermione had to suppress a giggle, and she felt Fred's body practically convulsing next to her as he attempted to do the same.

"What makes you say that, dear?" Molly asked him. She had a very serious look on her face, but Hermione could see the merriment in her eyes as she humoured the little boy.

"I'm a boy, and Archie's a boy. So, the next baby is going to be a boy. Archie thinks so too."

"I suppose that we'll have to wait a little while longer until we can find that out, dear," said Molly, smiling brightly at both her grandsons. By the wink that she sent in both their directions, Hermione was almost certain that Molly agreed with both little boys, but she wasn't yet sure how to feel about it.

**HPHPHPHPHPHPHP**

Molly was sitting quietly in the corner of the lounge room, knitting away at yet another item for one of her numerous grandchildren. The very children that had once hated wearing her hand-knitted jumpers were now almost putting in orders to their mother so that their own children could have their own Weasley jumpers. The irony did not escape Molly.

"Any word on Hermione?" her husband's voice emanated from the other corner of the room, and made Molly jump slightly. It had been several years since all the children had moved into homes of their own, but was still not accustomed to the silence. Yes, she had been alone with Arthur when the children had been at school, but there was more finality to this silence.

Each of their children had their own lives now, and they would not be returning for the summer holidays anymore. They now had their own children now, one of them even in the midst of being born.

"Fred said that he would send an owl as soon as the baby is born," she replied to her husband as she returned once more to her knitting. No sooner, than she had spoken a loud tapping could be heard from the window.

"I'll get it!" said Arthur, putting down his newspaper and jumping up from his seat.

"Well, I'll be..." he said, eyes roaming over the parchment. "This may be the only time I get to tell you this Molly, so I shall savour it, but this is one time when you were wrong."

"What do you mean?" Molly put down her knitting with one hand whilst pushing her glasses further up her nose with the other hand.

"Fred and Hermione," he replied, a chuckle escaping his lips. "Hermione had the baby, and it's a little girl."


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6: Precious Gift**

Since the birth of their daughter Stella, happened so close to their fifth wedding anniversary, Fred and Hermione had very little time to prepare anything special to celebrate. Not to mention, it would be the first time that they had left Stella with another member of the family.

Whilst Fred was at the shop all day, it was Hermione who had been with her precious baby girl all day. Hermione refused to separate from her, even just to go grocery shopping. So, it was with this in mind that Fred suggested they leave all the kids with George and Angelina for one night so that they could get a bit of quality time by themselves.

"I really don't know, Fred," she said to her husband, biting at the fingernails of her left hand as she spoke. "Suppose something happened?"

"Nothing will happen," replied Fred, rubbing a hand up and down his wife's back as they stood looking at the calendar that was magnetically attached to their refrigerator. There was only two days until their anniversary, and they needed to quickly decide on their plans.

"You're right, I'm sure it won't, but what if Stella can't get to sleep and keeps Angie awake all night. It's not fair to do that to them."

Fred wrapped his arms completely around him wife, burying his head into Hermione's abundant hair so that he could plant a kiss there.

"I can tell that you're really nervous about leaving her with someone else, but George and Angie know how to look after kids. They will do a terrific job, and it will only be for a few hours while we go and have dinner. We can call them after we have finished our meal to see how Stella is going, and then if they're not faring too well, we can pick her up. If she's fine, Stella can spend the night with them, and we can come back here to uhhh... _celebrate_ our wedding anniversary."

Despite herself, Hermione could not help but start laughing.

"That's one way of putting it," she giggled into Fred's chest, as he continued to stroke her back in gentle, calming movements. She sighed in contentment, wanting to stay in the warmth of Fred's arms just a little longer.

"I can't believe that we've been married for five years," said Hermione after a short pause.

"I still can't get over the fact that we didn't have our first date until after we were married," chucked Fred. "Do you still have that red dress you wore back then?"

Hermione let out a gasp, stepping back slightly so that she could look her husband in the face.

"You remembered what I wore?" she questioned, astonished that he was able to recall such a detail.

"Of course I do," he said. "You looked as sexy as hell in that dress. Still do."

He winked at Hermione, sending a blush spreading across her face, in a colour that would rival that of the dress she had worn on her first date with Fred.

Hermione never ceased to be amazed at how he made her feel attractive, even after three children, one of which was born only a few weeks previous.

"I love you," she said to him, stepping closer so that she would be able to wrap her arms around him once again, this time reaching for his neck to pull him closer to her.

"I love you too," Fred managed to mumble before Hermione's lips found his.

**HPHPHPHPHPHPHPHP**

"Now, I've got her bottles and formula in this pocket. The blanket that she sleeps with is on the other side, in the other pocket and –"

"And, you need to relax," chucked Angelina. "I haven't killed my kids yet, so I must be doing something right."

Hermione did not look too reassured by Angelina's answer.

"The boys have stayed over a million times, yes, it's Stella's first time spending the night, but if there are any problems, we will let you know straight away."

Angelina literally started to push Hermione out the door, towards the car where Fred was waiting for her.

"Now, go and have a lovely time with your husband. Happy Anniversary!" she called out, just before shutting the door in Hermione's face.

Hermione chose to ignore the feelings of disgruntlement that were presently flooding her stomach region, and walked to join Fred in the car. Thankfully, his driving had improved rather drastically over the course of the past five years. Hermione had finally allowed him to drive after it got dark in the evenings.

"How did that go?" Fred asked when Hermione had made herself comfortable in the passenger's seat.

"It wasn't too bad," Hermione admitted after a protracted pause. "I guess we can leave now."

Fred smiled with immense relief, before following Hermione's instruction.

"Now," he said to her once they had left, in an attempt to divert her attention away from the fact that the children were not with her. "I know that you told me not to go to too much trouble, but I do have a bit of surprise planned. It will be a little bit of a drive, so let me know if you want to stop over for awhile."

Hermione nodded, wondering what on Earth Fred had planned for them. She watched as he reached forward, and put some music on. Calming orchestral sounds flooded the vehicle, and Hermione felt herself relax rather quickly. She settled back against the seat, enjoying the view of the English countryside that was whizzing past outside the window.

What started out as rolling hills with a few trees dotted along the sides of the road became small plantations of trees, and soon this became progressively denser as they approached the forest.

Hermione was slightly wary of forests. She had quite enough of them when she, Harry and Ron were searching for Horcruxes, however, this forest seemed much less intimidating. In fact, it almost seemed picturesque and beautiful.

Fred continued to drive, deeper and deeper into the trees. Once he strayed off the main road, Hermione began to get a little more curious.

"Fred, where are you taking me?"

Fred only smiled, and kept his eyes on the road ahead slowing down as they hit a part of the road which was no longer sealed, but instead just a patch of loose gravel.

"It's a surprise."

Hermione clicked her tongue on annoyance.

"Come on, you have to give me some kind of hint," she said, watching his body language carefully in case that in itself gave away any information. However, Fred was slightly more obliging with his words.

"It's our fifth wedding anniversary. I wanted to make a bit of tradition a little more exciting."

Hermione fell silent, not sure what to make of his answer. What was tradition for a fifth wedding anniversary? She should have given this more thought, and perhaps a little research wouldn't have gone astray.

However, Hermione did not have to think too hard for too long. They emerged into a clearing in the forest. A log cabin was positioned directly in front of them.

Suddenly, it all clicked in Hermione's head. Fred had been rather creative with his plans. A fifth wedding anniversary was signified by a gift of wood, hence the log cabin.

Getting out of the car, she went to take a closer look. It was stunning. Just like out of a picture book.

"I just can't believe you went to all this effort!" Hermione said, genuinely shocked at the thought that must have gone into preparing this.

Fred grinned, and Hermione felt her heart melt a little when she saw his smile. It lit up her entire world when he smiled at her.

"I just wanted to do something special for you, to show you how much I love you. Now let's head inside before we get too cold out here."

Fred took Hermione's hand in his own, leading her towards the front door, whispering to her as they walked.

"I asked the owner to help me out a little," he said quietly into her ear. "I asked if he could put a little extra support underneath the mattress of the bed."

"Why would we need extra – oh... never mind."

Hermione rolled her eyes as she realised exactly what Fred's plans for this evening were.


	7. Chapter 7

**_If you visit my twitter ( choc_cupcakes32) you can see the awesome Harry Potter themed cake my friend made for my 21st birthday the other day. Hint: Don't forget to stroke it's spine._**

* * *

"Mummmm!"

"Daddyyyyy!"

There was a stampede of small feet pattering across the grass as each of the children of the Weasley family ran towards their respective parents, arms flung out and eyes wide open.

Hermione turned around as she felt a pair of thin arms wrap around her waist. Looking down, she came face to face with Henry's slightly toothless grin. He had recently lost a couple of baby teeth, including both of his very front teeth. It made for an adorable photo at his muggle primary school _(elementary school if you are American)_, but it gave him an annoyingly good excuse to not eat some of his vegetables at dinner.

"Mummy, Uncle Charlie is taking some of the others down to the Quidditch pitch to teach us how to play. Can I go with them?"

Hermione had to consider this. Never having had children, Charlie had not quite grasped the concept that children needed to be watched at all times. His tendency to get over-involved in his activities had caused some strife in the past.

"I suppose that's okay," she finally conceded. "As long as Uncle Charlie stays near you at all times, then yes, you may go down to play."

"Woohoo!" shouted Henry, letting go of his mother and turning to the others. "Let's go, guys!"

They all took off, running down the hill as fast as their legs would take them. Hermione kept an eye out, looking to see exactly which children were heading down. She was able to count Henry and Archie; Teddy, James and Albus; and Toby.

Going back inside to help her mother-in-law prepare lunch, Hermione resolved to check on them all a little later, just to make sure that no one had fallen off their broom or been hit in the head by a stray bludger.

All too soon, lunch was ready, and Hermione volunteered to take a short walk down to the orchard and Quidditch pitch to collect Charlie and all the children. She mentally created a tally to ensure that everyone was found.

The babies were inside the house with their mothers and fathers. Lily, Sandy, Myrthe, Heloise, Molly and Lucy had built a fort in the garden, close to the house. Victoire had decided to be very grown up that morning and help her grandmother in the kitchen.

As Hermione approached the orchard she could hear the shouts of Teddy, Henry, James, Albus and Toby. It seemed that Archie had abandoned the game to play with some worms from the ground. Moving towards him, Hermione picked him out of the dirt pile, doing her best to dust him off. However, she could not help but think that she had forgotten someone.

It was then that her stomach contents seemed to travel up her oesophagus as panic set in.

Stella was not with them.

Hermione had already been to all the areas the children were allowed to play in, and she had not been there.

"Archie?" she said as calmly as her body would allow. "Do you know where your sister is?"

"Nope," he grinned as he let go of a particularly juicy bug, leaning over his mother's arms to watch it fall to its death.

"Let's head back up to the house for lunch, and we'll see if we can find her along the way," Hermione replied, walking as fast as she could with Archie still in her arms.

Pulling her phone out from her pocket, she quickly scrolled down the contacts to Fred's number. It attempted to ring a few times, but soon cut out to a scratchy, static sound. There was too much magic in the air for the device to work properly.

Resorting to magic, she grabbed her wan from her pocket before depositing Archie on the ground. Holding onto his hand with one of hers, she used her dominant hand to cast a patronus, imbuing it with a message for Fred. Perhaps he had seen her, and Hermione was worrying for nothing.

Reaching the house in record time, Hermione approached Fred.

"Do you have Stella with you?"

Fred looked completely perplexed before a very worried expression crossed his face. The patronus dissolved as Hermione walked through it, not allowing it to give its message.

"I thought that you had her," he replied, instantly whipping his head around to search for her.

"No," replied Hermione, her eyes widening with realisation. "I thought that _you_ might have had her."

"Stella?" Hermione called out, hoping with all her heart to hear her daughter's high-pitched voice call out back to her.

Fleur offered to look upstairs in the bedrooms. Perhaps she had grown tired, and fell asleep in one of the beds. Charlie and George went to look out in the chicken coop, whilst Angelina searched the lower half of the house. Every person went to look in a different place, attempting to cover as much ground as possible.

If she was anywhere nearby she would be found within minutes, however, each adult trooped back to meet up in the kitchen with no response. No one seemed to have seen her.

The noise in the house escalated quickly.

Adults were nervously discussing all the possibilities as to where the little girl could be, whilst some of the younger children had started crying because they were hungry. Their mothers attempted to soothe them, but nothing seemed to be working.

Hermione felt sick. It was like all the walls of the house were closing in on her, and she needed to get out. There was not enough air in this room.

Standing at the back door of the Burrow, she opened it gazing out into the empty garden. The beads of sweat that had accumulated on her forehead and palms had nothing to do with the warm summer air that was surrounding her.

"Mummy?"

Hermione looked down to see Henry by her side.

"Darling, Mummy is busy at the moment," she said to him, reverting her gaze back to the garden, hoping to see her daughter materialise somewhere.

"But Mummy, it's about Stella," he said, speaking louder so that he could get his mother's full attention.

Hermione's head snapped back down to her eldest son.

"What about Stella?" she asked him, her voice far more urgent than before.

"When we went to play Quidditch with Uncle Charlie, she followed us for awhile. She still might be down at the orchard."

Anybody who was in close proximity had heard what Henry had told his mother.

"Did you see where she went after that?" Fred immediately asked attempting to sound as calm as possible so that he would not scare his son.

"No," replied Henry, shaking his head. "But we can start looking for her down there, can't we?"

This seemed to spur Hermione into action.

"Henry, you stay here with Archie and the other children. You can start having some of your lunch. Daddy and I will be back soon, with the other adults."

After checking that Archie was indeed safely with the others, Hermione and Fred immediately began to jog through the garden of The Burrow in the direction of the orchard, hoping that Stella had not travelled too far.

Having spent a great deal of his childhood here, Fred was at the advantage. He knew all the nooks and crannies a person would be able to hide in, however it was Hermione who spotted the little girl's dress in the water first.

A touch of hot pink was visibly floating in the pond.

Hermione's scream never left her, and it felt as though her heart had stopped beating in her chest.

Stella was face down in the water, arms and legs splayed out to either side of her body. There was no movement.

Bolting towards the water, it was only then that Hermione's voice screeched through the air, shouting for her daughter. She could feel Fred beside her, silent but running towards the pond all the same.

Just as they approached the water's edge, the little girl's head popped up, and she grinned.

"Look Mummy!" she cried out, promptly putting her face back in the water whilst the remainder of her body stayed floating on the top.

"Stella! Stop that!" she heard Fred's voice reverberate through the trees, carrying across the water with impressive sonority.

Stella's head popped up once more, confused at her father's command.

Fred reached the water first, and yanked her out by the arm.

"Don't you ever do that again!" he said to her, face almost as red as his hair in his anger.

Stella's smile vanished, and her blue eyes looked at her father in fear.

"That is not safe," Fred continued, but in a slightly quieter tone. "You cannot go near the water without an adult."

He pulled her close to him, wrapping his arms around her small frame protectively.

Hermione could not help but release tears of relief. Stella was safe.

Charlie, George, Harry and Ron had come running as soon as they had heard the shouting and screaming. Panting, colour re-entered their faces once they saw that their niece was alright.

"Don't you ever do that again," Hermione sobbed, wrapping her arms around her husband and daughter.

"Swimming, Mumma," voiced Stella, not quite able to articulate herself in a full sentence. "Like fishies. Like star fishies."

Despite the fact that he needed to be disciplining his daughter for her unsafe actions, Fred could not help but chuckle.

"Were you trying to be a starfish, darling?" he asked Stella.

"Yes!" Stella giggled enthusiastically, throwing her arms out. "Stella Starfish!"

Even though her heart was still racing at a million miles per hour, Hermione could see a little of the humour in the situation.

"My goodness, by the sounds of things, I think that's going to turn out to be your new nickname, Stella. What do you think?"

"Yes!" crowed Stella. "Stella Starfish! Stella Starfish! Stella Starfish!"

"That's settled then. How about a bath and some lunch for the little starfish?" asked Hermione, pulling her thin cardigan off her shoulders to wrap Stella in.

With each her father holding her left hand, and her mother holding her right hand, Stella skipped all the way back to the Burrow, eagerly awaiting her lunch as though nothing had happened.

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